Exact Answer: 4 – 20 Days
Airmail is a mail transport service which helps to transport mails employing air transportation i.e via an airplane. Airmail items reach their destination a lot quicker than surface mails wherein mails are transported by land or sea. Airmail might be the only option to send emails to certain destinations which are situated overseas if the mail cannot wait for the time it would take to arrive by ship.
How Long Would Airmail Take?
Given below is a table of estimated delivery days for an Airmail to reach the following places:
| Country Name | Estimated Delivery Days |
| Honk Kong | Approx. 4-10 days |
| U.S.A | Approx. 15-20 days |
| U.K | Approx. 20-25 days |
Even in the digital age, individuals and businesses rely on postal mail to send packages, letters, documents. Airmails are generally reliable. The process of sending and receiving mails via air becomes even faster if the sending and receiver centers are airport cities. Thus, if one is in a hurry to deliver the mail, Airmail is one of the best options to deliver it safely and quickly.
Generally, Priority mail, Priority mail express, and first-class mail pieces are shipped by air. Sometimes the mail may travel by a combination of both air and ground depending upon the location. Airmail always strives to get the mail delivered to the recipient in the fastest and quickest way possible. Airmail services also provide its customers track and trace system using the internet to ensure that their parcel reaches the right hands.
As the packages by Airmail travels by air, certain items are not accepted under international air parcels (Airmail) like anything which is sent in contravention of any enactment for the time being in force, any indecent or obscene articles, any explosive, inflammable, dangerous, filthy, noxious or delirious substances or anything which is likely to injure the postal article in course of transmission by air.
Why Does Airmail Take So Long?
Airmail is generally more expensive due to the cost involved in transporting packages via aircraft. Ground mail, in comparison with Airmail, tends to be a cheaper alternative. Specific pricing varies widely depending on destination and package size.
Airmail offers both quickness and efficiency of delivery. Airmail can guarantee a package’s arrival in a short span of time compared to other surface mail services that are comparatively much slower.
As the name implies, airmail involves loading parcels and packages onto airplanes and flying them to mail depots, where the parcels are distributed to the addressee. Airmail companies may have their own aircraft for shipping items nationally and worldwide. Airmails are well suited for international deliveries because airborne transports cover fast distances in a shorter period of time.
However, Airmail too can face unnecessary delivery delays. If mail is coming from high-risk countries, all such mails are thoroughly scrutinized. Airmails also need to encounter customs. Customs are not controlled by the postal services. The delays at customs are weeks long. Customs are a combination of the local tax authority, probably border control/law enforcement, the local agricultural department (if sending anything organic), any other government oversight body, and the postal service.
Airmail might not only go for customs inspection but might also need to wait for additional plane flights. Since not all scheduled international mail flights occur daily, mails might wait for another day or transit through another country.
Conclusion
Airmail, as the name suggests, delivers mails via air transport i.e airplane. It ensures speedy delivery and more efficiency. However, keeping the cost aspect in mind, charges for Airmail are relatively high since posts and mails will be sent by air.
Even though delivery is completed in the shortest time possible, that might not be the case every time. The biggest hurdle that Airmail encounters in its delivery process is customs inspection which may cause delays in delivery.
Thus, deciding whether Airmail is the optimal way for sending out a particular package or parcel depends on the budget, efficiency required, and mailing needs.
References
- https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/466815
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1944-9720.1979.tb00154.x
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